Laughter for Slaughter
by SolemnSerpent
Summary: This story will be based around the Jockey; written for the contest winner from Green-Flu-Awareness on deviantart. Matthew is just another average human victimized by the Green Flu apocalypse. Slowly driven mad from the loss of his family and closest friends, and transformed by the virus, Matthew struggles to find his place in the world. Rated M for gore and violence.
1. Prologue

**Author's Note: **

**Warning: This fanfiction contains extreme violence, gore, angst, insanity, and other properties that may not be suitable for some. Consider yourself warned, as this fic is rated M for a reason. Use your own judgement here and don't leave hateful reviews and such. Thank you, and those of you who wish to continue reading, please go right ahead.**

**Yeah, Serpy is at it again, writing Left 4 Dead fanfiction in the wee hours of the morning. So here's the story behind this piece of writing: there was a contest on dA (deviantart) for the group I belong to, where I offered to write someone as much fanfiction as they wanted as part of the contest prize. So the winner wanted some fanfiction written about the Jockey, who apparently is in some need of some fanfiction TLC.**

**Forgive me, because I can't write a Southern accent for the life of me.**

**Serpy needs a nap. A long, long nap.**

**R&R please.**

**~x~**

**Prologue- Down South**

It was just after the time where the sun reached its zenith, and the day was settling into a haze of midsummer heat. The air outside the comfort of the suburban homes felt thicker and heavier, as though I was wading through soup. Pausing to wipe the sweat off of my forehead with a damp hand, I leaned down and pulled the ripcord of the lawnmower perched on the edge of the lawn.

The machine roared to life, reeking of cheap gasoline and oil. I grimaced at the smell. Mowing lawns wasn't the ideal way to spend my weekend, but there was no choice in the matter: Ma needed the money. I had been at it for about four hours now, mowing lawns in front of the cookie-cutter suburban houses. I looked up the street at my own house, pretty much identical to the rest, with the difference of paint color and some outdoor decorations. I was paid to mow every damn lawn in this place, and it was tiring work to lug the lawnmower from house to house, as well as collect the grass clippings and such.

After finishing with what seemed to be the thousandth lawn, I leaned on the machine, tired, ready for a break. There were still five more houses to be done, and then it would be home free for the rest of the day.

Emma had already invited me over to her house for soda and a nice round of violent video games. I smiled. Emma and her sister Autumn had been my best friends since we had been born, it seemed like, and still remained so. Emma had never commented on…. well, the financial issue my family was always stuck in, and had learned to move our time together around it. I had never met someone as batshit crazy as Emma before in my life, and I was glad she was there for me.

I grinned, and then shook my head as I realized that I had been staring into space like some kind of dumbshit, instead of finishing up my work. I mentally chided myself. There would be time for fun later. Right now I had a job to finish.

"Ah'm home, ma."

My mother looked up as I entered the kitchen of our house, soaked with sweat and holding a fat wad of cash in one hand. She was leaning against the pinewood table, her face drawn and anxious. She was holding a crumpled poster in one hand, and from where I was standing I could make out the 'CEDA' logo printed at the top. She didn't greet me with a smile, as was her custom, but instead beckoned me over to the table. I did so, placing the wad of bills next to her without a remark. For a full minute I sat there, waiting as my mother stared down at the CEDA poster.

"Matthew, have yuh watched the television recently? Watched anything 'bout CEDA?" she asked, her eyes betraying the nervousness and fear she was keeping out of her voice. She was trying to act casual, I could tell. But why? Why was she so anxious?

"No, ma. Ah went over tuh Emma's house after mowing the lawns 'n stuff. But whut're yuh talkin' 'bout? Ah haven't seen nothin' all day 'bout CEDA. Yer worrin' me, ma." I said, biting on my lip out of habit. I always bit my lip when I was worried, anxious, afraid… or all three.

"Honey, ah can't explain jus' yet, but ah've got teh get ya on an evac right away. Run upstairs an' pack all tha' ya need fer a trip- like, a campin' trip." Her voice quivered, and I was confused. Pack? Why? We hadn't gone on a trip anywhere since I was very little.

"But-"

"No buts, Mattie! Get goin', ah'll explain this tuh ya as soon as ya pack, alright?" My mother's voice brooked no argument, and I trudged upstairs to my threadbare room, pulling out large duffel and shoving articles of clothing into it. I packed the essentials, including my full kit of toiletries. I lugged it back downstairs, only to find my ma pulling out the pistol she kept in case of robbers and tucking it into the pocket of her slacks.

"MA! Whut're ya doin'?"

My shout seemed to startle her, and she jumped guiltily before recovering herself.

"Matthew, something bad has happened, and ah got tuh get ya out of here before it gets worse, honey," she said, turning to face me with her bright blue eyes full of something like a mixture of sadness and fear.

"What, ma? Does CEDA have something to do with it?" I asked, continuing to gnaw at my lip with my teeth.

My mother seemed to deflate, and then nodded.

"There's been an outbreak of something called the Green Flu, Mattie. It made abuncha people go crazy, attacking others and _biting _and _clawing_ and-" her voice broke for a moment, and I wondered if she had seen this on television. The whole thing sounded like a horrible horror film, one that lacked imagination.

"Ah saw it on the tele, there, and then it cut out to CEDA announcing evac. We got tuh get out of here, son. Ah'm taking the gun fer protection, see? Those sick people… they were clearly out of their right minds an' senses. If they attack us… ah want to get us both out of here unscathed, even if it means taking a few sick people down." Her voice was cold as steel for the last part, and it made me flinch. _None… none of this even sounds real, like a sick joke or something._ But a joke wouldn't force ma's hand into pulling the trigger of that pistol.

"Wait for me outside, Mattie. Ah just need to finish a few things up here," Ma said, and I knew she was hiding something again. But this time, I didn't question it. It felt like I had been plunged into cold water, like the time Emma pushed me into the nearby river in the early winter. My brain was numb; unable to process the boatload of information my mother had shoved on me. I turned and left the kitchen, opening the front door with one hand. I stood dazedly on the front step, looking out at the completely deserted street.

Nothing was out of place; everything was calm and quiet just like every summer afternoon. I turned my eyes to the south, looking at the distant shapes of the tall office building and hotels… and my jaw dropped in shock. I could now see the thick, black smoke billowing upwards into the clear blue sky. The city was on fire. The illusion of normalcy was shattered in that moment, as well as the silence. I could hear the sound of helicopters whirling in the air nearby, and my eyes sought them out. There were five of them in all, flying low over the streets.

"ATTENTION ALL CITIZENS, THIS IS CEDA. THIS CITY IS UNDER STRICT QUARENTINE. DO NOT ATTEMPT TO LEAVE YOUR HOUSES, AND BARRICADE ALL WINDOWS AND DOORS AS BEST AS YOU CAN. REPEAT; DO NOT LEAVE YOUR HOMES. BARRICADE YOURSELVES IN, AND AWAIT OFFICIAL INSTRUCTIONS. CEDA VEHICLES WILL BE HERE SOON TO ESCORT EVERYONE TO EVAC. PLEASE BE PATIENT. YOU HAVE TEN MINUTES TO COMPLY. ANYONE OUTSIDE OF HIS OR HER HOME AFTER TEN MINUTES WILL BE SHOT ON SIGHT. WE WILL BE SHOOTING TO KILL. I REPEAT WE WILL SHOOT TO KILL."

The man's voice was robotic, and his speech sounded rehearsed from how he blared using some sort of megaphone. But the message chilled me. _Barricade our homes? Shoot to kill? What's going on here?_

But I obeyed, anyway. I turned back around and headed inside the house again. My mother looked up from the table, her face paler than ever.

"Ya hear that, ma? We can't leave now. We got tuh barricade all the windows n'stuff now. They're going tuh pick us up for evac," I said, stating the obvious already. There was no way my mother couldn't have heard that loud blaring.

"Ah know, Mattie. Here, there are spare boards in the attic, as well as a hammer n'nails too. I'll get tuh work here on the front side, and yuh'll get the back porch, 'kay?" she said, her hand flying to the clear bulge of the pistol in her pocket. She was nervous; on edge, and I couldn't blame her. With a sigh, I walked upstairs, flicking on the light as I went.

_Whole world's gone tuh shit now._

Ten minutes later, I stood facing the windows looking out over our tiny backyard, looking over my handiwork so far. One of the windows was already boarded up, but there were two more demanding my attention. By now, the CEDA enforcement warning was in effect, and I was honestly surprised to see a flicker of movement outside of the open window. It was one of my neighbors, Mr. Torno, one of whom had paid me to mow his lawn earlier, just standing there, facing away from the window. He looked pale, and he swayed back and forth slowly, as though he didn't have a care the world. _What's wrong with him? Does he want tuh get shot?_

"Ay! Mr. Torno! Haven't yuh heard man, CEDA-" I started to hiss, but that was as far as I got. At the sound of my voice, Mr. Torno turned around, revealing gruesome, bloody features. The man looked like he had taken a baseball bat the face multiple times, and his neck was bent at an unnatural angle. He snarled at me, akin to a wild dog, and jumped right through the open window, his teeth bared, aiming towards my face

"HOLEY SHEEIT-" I started, but my curse was cut off as the man landed, knocking me over and pinning me to the ground with an unnatural strength. He tore at me with unnaturally long nails, and his teeth sunk into my right shoulder. I remember the hammer in my left hand; I beat at his face, trying vainly to shove him off of me while dealing head wounds that would've killed a lesser man.

Blood splashed over me as I finally got through the layer of skin, but the man ignored the pain entirely. He kept me pinned me to the floor, and his teeth fastened around my neck this time, biting down harder and harder, breaking the skin and drawing blood; choking me slowly. I fought desperately, but eventually the hammer slipped out of my hands as I became weaker and weaker from the deprivation of air. My eyes fluttered shut as the oxygen loss grew unbearable.

_Oh god, ah can't breathe… can't breathe… can't….mama…help….pl..ease…_


	2. Waiting for CEDA

**Author's Note: THERE. FINALLY. DONE. *passes out***

**Oath of Sacrifice will be updated next. Stay tuned!**

**~x~**

**Chapter 1- Waiting for CEDA**

"_**Mattie! Please wake up! You've got to wake up! Please! MATTHEW!"**_

The return to consciousness was horrible. I opened my eyes to see the blotchy, red face of my mother leaning over me, her arms clutching my shoulders, shaking me roughly. I groaned, blinking rapidly. Pain washed over me, and I jolted upward as my mother's shaking aggravated the wound on my neck. "Stoppit, Mum. You're hurting me," I gasped weakly, feeling my throat tense up as I spoke. My voice was hoarse and small, barely louder than a whisper. My hands flew to my neck, carefully hovering over the wound there. While I had been out, my mother had placed a bandage over the bite, though from what I could feel, blood had already soaked through it. _That's right… Mr. Torno got me good… WAIT. What happened after I passed out?_

"Oh thank god, Mattie, I was so worried. When I found you on the floor, and… and…" her voice trailed off, and she looked to the side. I followed her glance, and saw the remains of Mr. Torno on the floor. His eyes were yellow and full of rage, his skin a sickly grey, now that I looked at him closely. His mouth was bared in a snarl, gore coating his lips and teeth; splattered on his face and neck. And there was more blood, trailing down his forehead and nose from the bullet hole in the center of his forehead. A little ways off, I could see the hammer I had used to try and break Mr. Torno's skull, the head of the hammer still coated in the man's blood.

"What… what was wrong wit' him, Mum? He was jus' standin' out there, in the yard, so ah called out to him. But then, as soon as he heard mah voice, 'e turned around and leapt through the window; he pinned me to the ground quick as ya like. He got his teeth around mah neck, and ah tried to beat him off with the hammer, but eventually ah passed out…" I whispered hoarsely, my eyes glued to the body of the man, remembering the animal, primal savagery he had displayed earlier: the pitiless, soulless eyes that had stared at me as he bit down on my neck… I shuddered, and then winced at the pain in my neck. I felt arms encircling me again, and my mother hugged me tightly.

"Mattie, ah don't right know why this… thing attacked you, or what it is, but that weren't Mr. Torno. When ah found him on you, I could tell; there was a inhuman sickness in his eyes, and ah knew in that moment that the creature killing mah son wasn't the man ah had called a friend fer seven years. Ah put 'im out of his misery." She said, her voice quivering, and I could tell she was on the verge of tears again. "And then ah had to worry about ya, Mattie. You've been out of it for about three hours, son. Yer neck was bleeding pretty badly, and that bite looks nasty. I bandaged it up, but ah think a doctor needs tah look at it. But with CEDA's announcement 'n all, there was nothing ah could do…" she said, biting her lip and glancing towards the boarded up window.

I let her talk on. She was still holding me tightly upright in an embrace, stroking my hair, fingers whispering over my injury.

"Anyhow, let's get you up. Emma called earlier, but the line went dead after a minute or so. She said that she's fine, a bit panicked, of course, but otherwise unharmed. The power went out shortly after that. No runnin' water neither, or else I would've washed some of the blood off…" she muttered, and then wrapped an arm around my torso. Grunting, she heaved me off of the floor, holding me upright as my legs wobbled slightly. The wound on my neck was throbbing painfully, and I winced. I'd been bitten by a dog before, but that had been on my hand, and it hadn't been that deep. The dog had been overzealous and too eager. Mr. Torno had tried to tear my throat out.

My mother helped me to the plush, overstuffed giant red couch in our living room and sat me down on the comfy cushions while she bustled off to the kitchen, muttering something about 'fixing a hot meal'. I wasn't that hungry, but perhaps a hot meal would settle my nerves. I kept glancing back at the doorway where the blood-soaked body of Mr. Torno lay on the floor; I could see the puddle of blood. _That look behind 'is eyes…. It weren't human no more. Could this have to do wit' that flu Ma heard about on the TV?_ The thought scared me. _Anywhoo, how did this happen? Where did this flu come from? Why isn't CEDA doing anything besides quarantine and the 'evacuation' they have planned later? Why are we bein' forced to board up our homes and barricade ourselves in? _

I could see my mother had placed furniture in front of the front door and the windows. I could also see she had barricaded the back windows as well. It was like we were about to experience a war or something. _And how is the barricade supposed to keep out a virus? Is it a contact virus, or is it airborne? Judging on how it's called flu, ah'm assuming it's airborne…._

My mother walked in, bearing a bowl of something I couldn't see. As she came closer and placed the bowl in my lap, I saw it was a bowl of instant tomato soup with my favorite noodles mixed in. "Ah figured chewing would just hurt yer neck, Mattie, so ah made ya some instant soup. Ah had to use our kerosene gas stove, since the power's out…" She said, and then trailed off as she caught me staring at the blood puddle through the doorway.

She pursed her lips, her face creased with worry, and then she strode over and gently shut the door, cutting off my view of the neighbor's body.

"Now, Mattie, it ain't yer fault," she began, sliding down on the couch next to me and draping an arm around my shoulders, "there was nothing ya could've done. He was clearly outta his mind…" I nodded mutely, my hands clenching around the bowl. Still, I couldn't help but feel guilty. There was a human being lying dead in a pool of blood right behind the doorway about ten feet away, and here I was, sitting on a couch eating noodles and soup. _Ah know he was sick 'n all, but… It don't feel right._

I moodily stirred the soup in the bowl, only half motivated to start eating it. My mother patted my shoulder soothingly, but said nothing else.

We sat there in strained silence, passing the time in the dark. I took a few sips of the soup, wincing as the motion of swallowing aggravated the bite on my neck. My mother still had her arm draped around me, but the other was idly gripping the handle of the gun. She had reloaded it earlier on, much to my dismay, and from the white-knuckled my mother had on the gun, she was nervous as well. Perhaps an hour had passed since I regained consciousness, and about four since CEDA's announcement and warning. The power was still out, and all we could do was sit in silence.

_**BANG**._

The sound of something pounding on the front door caused the bowl to tumble from my lap and spill it's contents on the floor, and my mother to grip her gun so tightly her knuckles were milk-white. We looked at the door, where the banging continued. Someone was banging on the door.

"Ma," I whispered, keeping my voice as quiet as possible, "what should we do? With CEDA's announcement, no one should be out on the streets…" I trailed off, unsure. The last person I had seen outside was Mr. Torno, and unconsciously I glanced back towards the door hiding the body. _If there were more people like him…_ The banging grew louder and louder, and I could hear muffled grunts through the barricade and door.

"Sneak up to the upper level 'n have a gander out the window. See who it is. Ah don't think anyone knows we're here yet," My mother whispered back, her hand disabling the safety on the gun and aiming it at the door. I nodded at her, then quietly tip-toed out of the room and opened the door again. I avoided looking at the body, instead turning my attention to the stairs. I crept up them slowly, one step at a time, until I reached my mother's bedroom. The curtains were drawn, so that only a soft, blue light filtered through the sky-blue fabric. I crouched down, just barely parting the curtains so I could gaze down at the front of our yard and the street. What I say made my stomach turn.

There were people outside, walking with a strange, shambling gait I had only seen in those cheesy horror movies I laughed at with Emma. They all had pale, sickly gray skin, and those bright, yellow eyes. I shuddered, and drew back from the curtains. There were around ten of them on the street, in sight, and one of them was half-heartedly banging on our front door. They weren't vicious and aggressive… yet. I hurried back down the stairs, taking pains to keep as quiet as possible.

"Ma! Ma," I hissed, joining her side once again, "there's a bunch of people on the street. They… they're like Mr. Torno, all sick and funny-like. One of them is at the door, but ah don't think that they know we're here. So if we just keep quiet, ah think they'll just go away…" I trailed off just as the banging stopped. Both of our gazes were riveted on the front door. I heard footsteps moving away from the front door, and the strange moans faded away. I let out a silent breath that I hadn't know I had been holding. "We're safe now…" I muttered to my mother, but I was cut off by a loud sound.

"**ATTENTION ALL CIVILIANS! INFECTED INDIVIDUALS HAVE BROKEN THE QUARENTINE! WE WILL INITIATE A MANDATORY EVACUATION. PLEASE REMAIN CALM AND REMAIN IN YOUR HOMES UNTIL WE HAVE DEEMED THE AREA SECURE. I REPEAT…"**

And then the sound of gunfire echoed through the street.


End file.
